Motor vehicle park brakes are known to employ a brake unit mounted at a wheel of the vehicle or driveshaft or other drivetrain component to be acted upon by the brake unit to secure the vehicle when parked. The brake unit typically has a brake pad or other friction member mounted for movement between a brake-applied position and a brake-unapplied position. In at least certain motor vehicle park brake designs the friction member is operably connected to a brake arm pivotally mounted to a housing or mounting bracket or other such component of the brake unit. The brake arm typically is connected to the end of a park brake cable which runs from a brake apply lever or other hand-operable brake actuator and/or from an electric or other automatic actuator. In certain designs the park brake cable has a cable eyelet that receives the brake arm. The cable eyelet opening must be sufficiently large to easily receive the brake arm and to be removed from the brake arm for service, repair and the like.
Applying the park brake involves tensioning the brake cable to move the brake arm and, in turn, to move the friction member of the park brake to the brake-applied position. Releasing the brake involves releasing the cable tension. Typically, a compression spring or the like is provided to assist in moving the brake arm quickly to the brake-unapplied position when the brake is released. A problem has been discovered involving the cable eyelet disconnecting from the brake arm, especially when releasing the park brake. More specifically, the brake arm slips from the cable eyelet opening, rendering the park brake inoperative until the brake cable is reattached by returning the cable eyelet onto the brake arm.
It is an object of the present invention to provide improved motor vehicle park brake cables and cable eyelets for same, and motor vehicle park brake assemblies employing such improved cables and eyelets. Additional and alternative objects of some or all embodiments of the invention will be understood by those skilled in this field of technology in view of the following disclosure and in view of the description provided of certain exemplary embodiments.